The Eclipsed Melody
by SoraEclipse
Summary: (Makoto x Reader). You have moved back to Japan after 10 years away. On the way to your first day of school, you meet a bright boy who will change your world forever. Will the shadow of your past stop him though? (There will be M rated chapters later on.)
1. Chapter 1

Note: (y/n) = your (first) name (l/n)= last name (f/c)= favorite color [I do not own Free! or any of its characters. I am simply a fangirl.]

* * *

The melody of wind chimes echoes down the stone descent while fallen leaves dance to and fro on the path before you. A white torii stands proud in front of you, crossing over a stone stairway. As you approach it, you begin to dread the coming path. You step cautiously out onto the stairs and glance down the steep descent, a gulp getting caught in your throat. Even though it isn't too far, walking down stairs early in the morning is not wise, especially since you are an anti-morning kind of person.

Your neighborhood lies on a mountain in front of the Misagozaki Shrine, overlooking a fishing harbor. A great stone stairway runs up and down the hillside, connecting the shrine to the maze of pathways that run through the neighborhood. Every day, you will have to walk halfway up the steps to a single torii. There, a right turn lands you in front of your two-story home. Further up the steps lay two more torii and the shrine grounds at their backside. Behind the shrine grounds, a vast sea stretches towards the horizon. Throughout the day, the sun reflects endlessly on the surface, leaving all who see it speechless.

You lived here in Iwatobi as child, but had to move to America when your father was transferred. Your fraternal grandmother moved into the house to take care of it while your family was in America. However, she passed away a little under a year ago, leaving the house vacant. You're parents moved to England with your older brother when he departed for Oxford, forcing you to leave your friends in America. Reluctant to go with them to England, you decided to move back to Japan and take care of your childhood home. Now, ten years after leaving Iwatobi, you have returned to finish high school: alone.

Today is your first day at Iwatobi High School. You are nervous about transferring in at this time of the year; not many students transfer in halfway through the second semester. However, you don't let it scare you. Now, dressed in your new uniform and a (f/c) jacket, you stare down the long stairway and take a few cautious steps down.

'_Ugh, do I really have to walk to school every day? This is going to take some time to get used to...'_

A tiny mew drifts up from the side of the stairs, dragging you from your thoughts. You glance down to find a miniature white kitten staring up at you.

_ 'Aww, it's so cute!' _you inwardly stoop down and begin stroking the kitten's head. It's short fur dances beneath your fingers. The kitten's large eyes look up at you lovingly as your stroke it's soft fur. You giggle to yourself. You and your sister had always wanted a kitten, but your parents always said no. Countless memories of your childhood here play through your head. Small tears begin to sting the back of your eyes as you remember your sister. However, a gentle voice cuts through your memories before they flow over.

"He really likes you!"

You look over towards the voice. A tall boy is standing further down the steps, smiling up at the two of you. His hair is brown with a slight tint of green while his eyes are a pure, clear green. Like you, he is wearing a high school uniform.

_ I feel like I have seen that uniform before..._

"That little guy is really picky about who touches him," the boy continues. He walks up and sits down on the step below you, pulling out a cat toy in the process."Are you a cat person as well?" He holds the feather toy above the kittens head as he speaks, lifting it higher whenever the kitten jumps up for it.

"I love cats!" you reply cheerfully. Small laughs escape from your throat as you watch theire game. "They are so warm and playful!" The small kitten trots over to you places it's paws on your knee. This time, you squeal aloud before stroking it's head again. The boy laughs whole heartedly at your reaction. You playfully growl and stick your tongue out at the boy. After a moment of silence, you both erupt in laughter.

_ 'He has the dreamiest laugh ever! Please tell me that he lives around here!'_

"Did you just move here?" he asks, trying suppressing his laughter. Wiping a tear from the corner of his eye, he turns back towards you.

"Yeah. I moved in about a week ago." You point towards your house before continuing. "I live up there."

"Oh, really? I never knew that the house went up for sale." Slight confusion crosses his face.

"My grandmother was living there, but recently passed away. So, I decided to move in and take care of it."

"I'm sorry for your loss. Well, if you ever need anything, I live right down there." The boy motioned to a brown house at the bottom of the stairs.

The two of you talked about random topic for a while until realization dawned on you.

"Shit!" you yell, quickly standing up and dusting your skirt off. "I'm going to be late! It was nice to meet you! Bye!" You gave a swift farewell before racing down the stairs. If you were late for your first day, you would never hear the end of it.

* * *

A:N/ Hello! This is the first fanfic that I am posting here. I wasn't going to post this until next week, but, in honor of Makoto's birthday, here it is! There aren't very many Makoto x Reader stories on FanFiction, so I felt the need to make one. Hope you guys enjoy!


	2. Chapter 2

Note: (y/f/n) = your full name [I do not own Free! or any of its characters. I am simply a fangirl.]

* * *

Orange, yellow, and red leaves fall and paint the road. This is your favorite time of the year and you are excited about attending school in Japan. As you walk to school, memories of that morning's encounter fill your head.

_ I wonder if he will be there again tomorrow. It would be cool to meet him again. That uniform he was wearing...I feel like I have seen it before... _You stop dead as other students pass you. You had seen it before. In fact, you can see it right now. _Why didn't I realize it when I met him?! I am wearing the same uniform as him! That means, we go to the same school! Score. _You start walking again, eager to get to school.

Later that morning, you are standing outside of your new homeroom, waiting for the teacher to call you in. Not long after, you hear the teacher's voice flow into the hallway.

"We have a new student joining us today. She just moved to Japan, so show her the ropes." Murmurs fill the room as their excitement and anticipation to meet you rises. "You can come in now," the teacher calls to you. You open the door and step inside the classroom for the first time. All eyes are on you as you walk towards the teacher's desk.

"Introduce yourself," he commands you.

"My name is (Y/f/n). I just moved here from America, but I did live here when I was younger. So, nice to meet you. Umm.." You look over at the teacher, not knowing what else to say. He looks slightly annoyed at your pathetic introduction, but says nothing on the subject.

"Your desk is in the back by the window. Ryūgazaki," he calls to one of the students.

"Sir?" A boy with purple hair and red glasses responds.

"Share your textbook with her." He turns to you before continuing. "You will be sitting next to Ryūgazaki, go take your seat.

"Yes sir." You make your way to the back of the room while 'Ryūgazaki' waves you down. You take your seat and the teacher begins.

"Before we start, I have a little surprise for all of you." He holds up a stack of papers and smiles gleefully. "Pop quiz." The whole class groans at those words. "This will be fun," the teacher hums.

"I'm Ryūgazaki Rei," the boy next to you begins, turning towards you and holding out his hand.

"I'm (Y/n), nice to meet you." You shake his hand before continuing. "Oh, and just call me (Y/n). It feels weird to be called by my last name."

"Well then, it's nice to meet you (Y/n)-san." He smiles as he shakes your hand.

The teacher clears his throat, dragging your attention back to the front of the room. He slightly glares at you, but quickly turns and begins passing out tests. _Well this is going to be fun..._

* * *

The school bell rings, signaling the beginning of lunch. Rei stands up and turns to you with a smile.

"Shall we eat lunch together?" You are startled by his question, not expecting his offer.

"N-no. I couldn't possible bother you during lunch as well." Rei gives a troubled expression at your words.

"Why on earth do you think it would be a bother? Honestly, such thoughts are not beautiful." He pushes up his glasses and looks down at your with a huge smirk on his face. You laugh at the ridiculous face he is making.

"I'll take you up on your offer then." You smile at him, happy to have a friend on your first day.

"Rei!" A high voice calls from the other side of the classroom. The two of you turn to see a young blond boy running towards you two.

"Nagisa-kun, don't yell in the classroom," Rei scolds. He turns towards you as the boy apologizes. "(Y/n)-san, this is Nagisa-kun, a close friend of mine." The boy faces you and smiles widely.

"Hi!" he starts. "I'm Hazuki Nagisa, just call me Nagisa. It's great to meet you (Y/n)-chan." You giggle at his forwardness.

"It's great to meet you too Nagisa-kun."

"Hey, why don't we all eat lunch together? (Y/n)-chan can meet the other club members too!"

"Club members?"

"Yeah, Rei-kun and I are on the swim team. We all eat lunch on the roof together, you should join us!"

"Then I really would be a bother." You shake your head.

"(Y/n)-san..." Rei scolds. You release a sigh and submit.

"Alright, I will join, as long as I am not in the way that is. I just need to stop by the cafeteria. I didn't have time to pack my lunch this morning."

"It's settled then!" Nagisa cheers. The three of you make your way towards the cafeteria, then up to the roof.

* * *

A girl's voice pipes up when you three reach the roof.

"Nagisa-kun! Rei-kun! What took you two so long?" The voice came from a red-headed girl. You notice that her tie is the same color as yours. _She is in the same year as me huh? _

"Sorry, Gou-chan, Haru-chan." Nagisa chimes. "Where is Mako-chan?"

"He went looking for you two!"

You stand awkwardly behind Rei while Nagisa and the girl bicker back and forth_._

"Who is that behind you Rei?" she questions when she notices you. Rei is about to introduce you when Nagisa acts first. He pulls you out from behind Rei and holds you in the open.

"This is (Y/n)-chan! She is a transfer student who joined our class today." Nagisa seems so happy introducing you that some of your nerves vanish. Nagisa begins pointing to the others, "This is Gou-chan, a first year like us."

"Kou," she states simply before turning to you. "Nice to meet you, just call me Kou."

"Nice to meet you, my name is (y/f/n)."

"Mind if I call you (y/n)-chan?"

"Not at all, actually, I would rather that." You smile, happy with your new friend.

"The quiet one over there is Haru-chan. He is a second year," Nagisa continues, pointing to a boy with black hair.

"Lay off the -chan." He looks up at you before continuing. "I'm Nanase Haruka." is all he says before looking back down.

"Nice to meet you Nanase-senpai." He is a bit hard to talk to, but you're sure that he is a nice person.

The five of you sit down and begin to eat lunch together. Suddenly, the door to the roof behind you opens and a familiar brunette walks out.

"Geez, I looked all over for you two!" he scolds.

"Sorry Mako-chan." Nagisa apologizes. "Anyways, meet (y/n)-chan, today is her first day."

When the boy looks down at you, his eyes widen.

"Ah!" you both gasp in unison.

"What what, do you two know each other?" Nagisa inquires.

"You're the one from this morning..." You thought that you might meet him again, but never expected him to be close friends with the first students you talked to today.

'Mako-chan' seems equally surprised by the meeting.

"I didn't know that you were a student here," he says.

"Um, let me properly introduce myself," you start, standing up. You stick out your hand as you begin. "My name is (y/f/n), it's nice to meet you." He takes your hand and holds it in a strong grip, slightly laughing at your stiff introduction.

"My name is Makoto. Tachibana Makoto."

* * *

A/N: Yay! Chapter 2! I love writing this story honestly and I hope you readers will enjoy reading it. Sorry about any grammar errors, English is not my strong point. Chapter 3 will probably be up this Sunday. I only have time to write on the weekends so expect updates every Sunday.


	3. Chapter 3

First thing Thursday morning, you are summoned into the teachers' lounge. Mr. Onodera, your home room teacher, ushers you over to his desk and commands you to take a seat.

"How has your time here at Iwatobi been so far, (l/n)-san?" he begins.

"Fine. I don't really know the school that well yet, but the school isn't that bad." _It would be better if you didn't always glare at me_, you mutter to yourself.

"That's good. I know that you are still new, but have you decided on which club you will to join yet?"

"Umm, no sir. I thought that I was exempt from club activities." You had received special permission from the school to take on an after-school job. Though your parents were paying the mortgage and sending money, you were left to pay for anything that their monthly check didn't cover.

"Considering your situation, the school has allowed you to take on a job. However, it wouldn't hurt to join a club and meet new people." He picks up a small stack of papers from his desk. "Here are some club fliers. Please choose one before the weekend."

"And (l/n)-san," he says, rising from his chair, "this school has zero tolerance towards fights."

You grimace at his words, but only reply with a simple, "Yes sir." You quickly stand and leave the teachers' lounge.

_So,_ you think to yourself as you return to the classroom, _even the lousy home room teacher knows about it. How annoying._

* * *

The lunch bell echoes through the halls and kids rush to the cafeteria to be first in line. You let out a deep sigh and gather your things. You would have to spend the whole lunch looking through clubs and their fliers.

"What's wrong, (y/n)-san?"

You look up towards the voice to see Rei. Nagisa and Kou are standing close behind him, lunches in hand.

"That was a huge sigh just then (y/n)-chan!" Nagisa observes.

"I'm fine," you reassure them with a fake smile. "Anyways, I'm ready. Shall we head up?"

The four of you head up to the rooftop to join the other swim team members. Though you had only met them last week, it seems so natural to eat lunch together. The other members always give you a warm welcome and greet you. Today, however, you cannot enjoy their company. A dozen papers are scattered around you as you examine all the options. Another sigh escapes your lips, catching several gazes.

"Are you sure your alright (y/n)-san?" Rei questions again. A worried expression brandishes his face as he watches you intently.

"It's nothing, really," you grumble. Rei, however, is not buying your words.

"It's not beautiful to lie," he states, pushing up his glasses in the process. By this time, the others have gone quiet and tuned into your conversation. With all of their eyes trained on you, you are unable to keep quiet.

"Onodera-sensei told me that I have to join a club by this weekend. So, now I have to spend hours just looking through these damn fliers." You gesture towards the papers strewn around you. A slight headache forms due to your annoyance. Nagisa's voice was the first to ring out.

"Why don't you join the swim team?" he suggests.

"Huh?" is all you can mutter. The thought of joining the swim team had never really crossed your mind. You can swim, but seeing water always brings back unpleasant memories. "I'm not really that fast of a swimmer. Plus, I've never even competed before." This time, it is Kou's voice that pipes up.

"That's fine! Rei couldn't swim at all when he joined; look at him now. We could easily teach you how to swim better. Plus, it isn't very cold yet, so you can learn at the Iwatobi pool. Makoto-senpai," she turns to the brunette with hopeful eyes, "would you mind teaching (y/n)-chan how to swim?"

"Of course not, I would love to." Makoto gleefully responds. "That is," he looks directly at you, "if (l/n)-chan doesn't mind." Makoto's gentle smile quickly causes your face to heat up. You mind flies off into a thousand different directions.

"Um, are you sure Tachibana-senpai? Wouldn't it take away from your own practice?" Now obviously flushed, you struggle to respond to him. _Tachibana-senpai will be teaching me how to swim? But...then wouldn't we have to get really close to one another? _Each and every thought that enters your head deepens your blush.

You would be lying if you said that Makoto's body wasn't to your liking. Though you get to see him every morning, the thought of him giving you special lessons while he was half-naked was...

"(y/n)-chan," Nagisa's voice shattered your perverted fantasies, "would you like to join the swim team?" Everyone waits patiently for your answer, all hoping for your consent.

"Please let me think about it for a bit." Before anyone (Nagisa) can protest your decision, the school bell rings, signaling the end of lunch. You all disperse and head towards your own classes.

* * *

The rest of the afternoon passes exceedingly slowly. You try to focus in class, but fail. Thoughts of seeing Makoto swim everyday fill your head.

_Maybe I should join the swim club. It would get Onodera-sensei off my back and I would get to spend the afternoon with Makoto and the others. But, what am I suppose to do about THAT issue? Kou-chan said Rei-kun wasn't able to swim when he joined, right? I guess I should go talk to him about it._

The moment that your last class ends, you race out of the classroom to find Rei. He is about to head to the pool with Nagisa when you dart into their classroom. Not listening to the slew of questions coming from the both of them, you grab Rei's hand and drag him out to the back of the school.

"What the..," he chokes out between ragged breaths, exhausted from the sudden sprinting. "What's wrong (y/n)-san?"

"R-rei-kun..umm," you stutter. _Great, I've dragged him out here. Now what do I say?! _"Umm, Kou-chan said that, when you joined the club, you didn't know how to swim. Is that true?"

"W-well, yes it is." He lets out a large sigh before continuing. "I had all the theories memorized, but couldn't swim when the time came. Nagisa-kun, Makoto-senpai, and even Haruka-senpai tried to teach me how to swim, but I would just sink."

"So what did you do?"

"Well, I realized that the only stroke I hadn't attempted was the butterfly stroke. I tried the stroke out before practice one day and," he motioned to our position, "here we are. It turned out to be the only one I could accomplish." He gives you a thoughtful gaze before continuing. "(y/n)-san, can you not swim? That is the only conclusion I can arrive at as to why you called upon me." He pushes his glasses up. "Is that correct?"

"It's not that I can't..." your explanation drifts off. You lower your eyes to the leaf covered ground. "I just-"

"It's alright (y/n)-san." he interjects.

"Huh?"

"You don't have to tell me if you aren't ready. If you are every ready to though, I will listen." Rei places his hand softly upon your head, smiling down at you. It is the first time you have seen Rei give such a broad smile. Your face heats up at the contact.

"Rei-kun...thank you."

The two of you stand there like that for several minutes before Rei speaks up again.

"Hey, come watch practice today."

"But I-"

"Please? I want you to watch me swim" You can see a tint of blush on Rei's face. A slight giggle escapes your lips at the sight.

"Heh; alright, I'll come watch."

* * *

The two of you arrive at the swim club fifteen minutes after the start of practice. The moment that Kou sees you two, she stalks over; displeasure clearly written across her face.

"Rei-kun! (y/n)-chan! You two are fifteen minutes late to practice!" she scolds. "Rei-kun, hurry up and get changed!" As she watches Rei run towards the locker room, you speak up.

"Kou-chan, it is my fault that Rei was late. Please don't get mad him." Kou turns to face you at those words.

"I'm not mad (y/n)-chan, don't worry." She gives you a simple smile, showing the truth in her words. "What were you two doing anyways? Nagisa-kun said that you practically dragged Rei away from the classroom."

"I had to ask Rei-kun a few things, that's all."

She gives you a searching look, but asks no more. Rei returns from the locker room in his bathing suit not long after. It is a long black swim pants style suit with purple stripes running the length of his legs. He climbs on to the starting block and waits for Kou's signal. She blows her whistle and he dives into the water.

_His diving form is so beautiful. It's hard to believe that he can only swim butterfly._ You watch him for a while, but soon become restless.

"Is there anything I can do to help since I'm here?" Just sitting around and doing nothing doesn't sit well with you. If there was anything you could do to help, you would do it.

"Hmm," she hums, considering your request. "Would you mind timing Makoto? He wants to start working on trimming down his time, however I need to work with Rei and Nagisa so I can't time him."

"No problem." You retrieve a stopwatch from Gou and walk over to the lane where Makoto is slowly swimming across the pool.

His long arms slowly cut through the water's surface as he glides along the lane on his back. His perfectly toned body rests flush atop the water while strong legs gracefully kick the water below the surface. Though his movements are long and drawn out, his body moves swiftly across the water. Upon approaching the far wall, Makoto flips his body and submerges, gliding into the turn. Moments later, he returns to the surface on his back. As his body draws near, you can see all of the movements of the muscles on his chest. You glance away, slightly blushing at the thoughts that had run through your head.

You turn back just in time to see Makoto connect with the wall. His beautiful smile resurfaces when he notices you standing above him.

"Hey (l/n)-chan. I'm glad that you came to watch practice."

"Hey Tachibana-senpai. Kou-chan said that you needed someone to time you. I would love to help."

"Thank you!" Makoto chimes. He pulls himself into the ready position and waits for your call.

* * *

A:N/ Sorry that this is a day late. My internal clock got way off yesterday. (I thought that is was Saturday the entire day!) Anyways, here is Chapter 3. I apologize for any grammatical errors. I tried using this site's spell check, but it wanted me to stop using large vocabulary words saying that "It is too hard on the readers." Sorry, but I fancy large words.

Chapter 4 will be up soon and since it is Thanksgiving week here is America, I have a lot more time to write. Please rate&review! Bye!


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